Oil prices rose on Friday as both U.S. crude production and inventories declined, pointing towards a tightening market. A oil pump is seen at sunset outside Scheibenhard, near Strasbourg, France, October 6, 2017 . REUTERS/Christian Hartmann Strong Chinese oil import data also supported crude prices, traders said. With the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) leading a production cut, analysts said that global oil markets were now broadly balanced after years of oversupply. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were trading at $50.88 per barrel at 0350 GMT, up 28 cents, or 0.6 percent, from their last settlement. U.S. crude inventories dropped 2.7 million barrels in the week to Oct. 6, to 462.22 million barrels, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said late on Thursday. Crude production slipped 81,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 9.48 million bpd. In international markets, Brent crude futures were at […]